


Black Lines

by saschsquatch



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Blood, Blood Drinking, Fanart, Fluff, M/M, Pagan God Lucifer, Pagan god AU, Smut, Worship, alternative universe, blood sacrifice, human Cain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-01
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-08-14 03:43:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16485290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saschsquatch/pseuds/saschsquatch
Summary: To protect the village every one-hundred years a human sacrifice must be made. Cain’s brother Abel was supposed to be the one, but when he died Cain decided to take on this important role instead. He isn’t scared to die, but when he finally gets to meet his deity, Lucifer isn’t what Cain expected him to be.





	1. Chapter 1

The wonderful [Tauflug](url) made fanart for my story! Thank you!

~~~

Cain let out a tired yawn, his eyes stinging from the lack of sleep as he searched his wardrobe for the right outfit. He knew this day would come eventually, ever since he made his decision, but that didn’t necessarily mean he felt prepared. One couldn’t prepare for this, not really. He had read books and went to the service in the temple, he listened to his priest and learned his prayers by heart, but he couldn’t know what would happen today. No one could, because most people weren’t allowed to go into the sacred woods and visit the shrine deep within.

Cain’s hands caught the special robe and he pulled it out to inspect it. It used to be Abel’s, once upon a time. Abel had worn it once, just to see if it was the right size, and Cain hoped that he would fit into it just as well. The white silk felt soft between his fingers, almost too thin not to rip apart, but it was unexpectedly resilient. There was no point in standing here and staring at the robe as if Cain’s duty would cease to exist if he just stood still long enough. He had to hurry or there would be less time to say goodbye to his family.

Today would be the last time he ever got to see his village, but Cain had come to terms with it when he volunteered for the sacrifice. Abel had been the one who was supposed to be sacrificed today, but after he died someone else had to fill his spot. A virgin, of course. 

The village could be glad that they had a Patron God or their harvests wouldn’t be half as fruitful and the waging wars would have torn down their houses long ago. The sacrifices were necessary and Cain didn’t doubt that their God had saved many lives over the centuries and one human sacrifice every hundred years wasn’t even that much compared to what other deities wanted. Still, Cain had seen the fear in the faces of the unmarried men and women of his community, some of them his close friends. There was no way he could have waited until the priest chose one of them to be sacrificed and if he was able to make his decision again, he wouldn’t change a thing. Cain was nervous, but he wasn’t afraid.

Cain adjusted his underwear and slipped into the robe before he combed his fingers through his long, messy hair a few times. Maybe he should have cut it short before today, but now it was too late and it didn’t matter that much anyway. He checked himself in the mirror only to see that the rings under his eyes were as dark as he expected them to be after he got about half an hour of sleep last night. His beard looked okay and all in all he seemed a bit tired, but his robe was fitting and everything else was fine too. He didn’t need to worry.

Except for the dying part, at least. Cain was certain that he was going to die in those woods, even if no one could tell him for sure. No one ever came back, so how would he know what really happened in the shrine? The holy texts said that it was going to be a blood sacrifice and while they weren’t specific at all, in most cases that meant cutting the person’s throat. Cain could certainly imagine worse death scenarios. He wasn’t that old yet with his twenty years and if it wasn’t for today he would surely grow old, have a husband or a wife and children and he would inherit his parents’ house, help his father with the animals and work on the community’s shared fields, but Cain didn’t entertain those dreams anymore. That wasn’t his fate and that was fine. Others would eventually fill the hole he left behind.

He went to the water basin to quickly wash his face and got down into the kitchen were his father Adam was already preparing a generous breakfast with pancakes and sausages and all kinds of bread with jam, a meal of a size that they would usually just have on a holiday. Well, today was some kind of special day. Cain’s father looked over his shoulder and sent Cain a smile, one that was surely meant to be encouraging, but Cain could see the sadness in his gaze. 

“Morning, son,” Cain’s father muttered as walked over to Cain to wrap him in a tight hug. He wasn’t an unemotional person, but it was unusual for Cain’s father to initiate affection. Cain appreciated it though, returning the hug whole-heartedly. It would be the last time. “You’re prepared?” his father added, “Your mum’s gonna be here soon, she’s just checking on the chickens. Sit down and eat, I’m taking care of everything.”

Cain didn’t argue with his father and took a seat at the table, pulling his plate of pancakes closer to spread strawberry jam on them. “How’s Ma holding up?” he asked as he began to eat. Cain could taste how much heart his father had poured into these pancakes, one of the few things he could do for his son on this last day.

“She’s fine,” Cain’s father replied in a half-hearted lie, his back turned on Cain as he prepared more food over the stove. They couldn’t eat all of that for breakfast anyway, but Cain knew his parents; they would urge him to take as much with him as he could. “Honestly I think she’s doing better than me,” Cain’s father said with a deep sigh. It was the only thing that Cain regretted: Leaving his loved ones behind.

Cain was a few bites into his breakfast when his mother Eve entered through the back door that led from the kitchen into the garden where they held their chickens, a relaxed smile on her face and a basket full of fresh eggs loosely hanging from her bent elbow.

“Good morning, family,” she chanted cheerfully and Cain knew what that meant. His mother was a clumsy lady that could get in trouble easily and with her forty years she had never fully outgrown her childhood. Sometimes she could seem younger than Cain himself, even with the wrinkles in her face, most of which came from laughing so much. She was a highly motivated woman, but in times like these she didn’t act like most people would expect a mother to behave. She didn’t cry over the fact that she wouldn’t see her son again, she’d give Cain a smile and a well-meant goodbye. Cain still remembered the day his brother died. His mother didn’t shed a tear, and she didn’t for the weeks and months to come. She smiled brighter than ever and tried to cheer up Cain and his father, and half the village thought she had gone insane. But that was just what Cain’s mother was like. Especially in hard times she wore her smile with determination and today wasn’t any different.

Cain chuckled, sending his mother a smirk, attempting to cover his feelings. He wouldn’t have to deal with the loss for too long, Cain thought, but he hoped his family would be fine. “Good morning,” he said with a nod.

His mother was by his side in a heartbeat, setting the basket down on the table to pull her son into a hug. “Oh honey,” she sighed, squishing his face with her hands, “Did you even sleep? You look awful!”

“I’m sorry, Ma,” Cain laughed, trying to hide his growing sadness, “I didn’t really. You know how I am.”

His mother ruffled his hair with her palm and sat down by his side so they could share their breakfast, mostly in silence except for when Cain’s mother had to tell them about something funny one of their animals did or gossiped about the other people in the village. She was cheerful for them when they couldn’t and Cain was eternally thankful about that. 

Cain would have liked to stay with his parents forever, just forget about the sacrifice and continue to live his life, but the breakfast ended way too soon and he had to tell his parents goodbye. His father pulled him into a rib-crushing hug and Cain could hear him sob as he wished him good luck. His mother gave him a smile as she caresses his cheek and told him to behave in joking manner, but Cain knew that she hid her sadness that way. She would miss him, both of them would. Things wouldn’t be the same without him, but they needed to be strong now. It was for the best.

With heavy heart Cain turned to walk towards the entrance of the sacred forest. He didn’t look back over his shoulder to see his parents’ faces again out of fear it would make him turn around and reject his duty altogether. He needed to do this.

When he arrived at the woods, the priest was already waiting for him there. She looked beautiful today. She had her dark hair pinned up with golden clasps and her ceremonial robes loosely fitted her body. She looked just as divine as Cain would imagine their deity when she gave him an honest smile.

“You are doing the right thing,” she said, “Thank you. In the name of our village.” Cain nodded. He knew this. He was protecting his community and that was important. He wouldn’t turn around to run away.

The priest spoke her prayers and wished him good luck before Cain undressed his shoes to enter the forest by himself. Not even the priest was allowed to go far inside, so Cain had to search for the way on his own, but she promised him that the shrine was easy to find. Maybe it was the Luminous God who guided Cain through the woods, because the grass felt softer under the soles of his feet and the trees seemed to make way for him as a ray of sunlight showed him the path. Unfortunately this didn’t take the nervousness from Cain, his legs shivering weakly as he found his way. By the next sunrise he wouldn’t be alive anymore.

Cain didn’t know how long it would take him to find the shrine, but just as he began to contemplate about it, he stepped into a big clearing within the forest and saw the beautiful building before him. It looked just like Cain had seen it in their sacred texts written by his ancestors, a big temple-like architecture constructed from dark wood with curved roofs and tall windows made of coloured glass. Cain felt petrified as he stood before it.

Cain would meet the Luminous God in there, but now the thought scared him so much he felt the urge to turn around. Who would wait for him inside the shrine? Would their God even look human or could he be like the monsters from times before humans even existed? Cain swallowed deeply and reminded himself to breathe. He would die here, there was no way around it. He could might as well do it now, so he took the step inside.

The air inside the shrine felt different when the heavy wooden doors silently fell shut behind Cain. He expected such an old building to be a bit stuffy and full of dust, and the doors to creak heavily, but far from it. The floors were clean and felt soft under Cain’s naked feet, and he couldn’t spot any spiderwebs in the corners. The solid wooden walls looked as if they were built just a few months ago, although the shrine must have been several centuries old. He felt a strange certainty that he was supposed to be here. 

An unknown force urged him to walk further inside, crossing the entrance hall to push open the doors to another room. Cain looked inside a big hall with huge, coloured windows and beautifully woven tapestries decorating the walls and he could smell the faint scent of incense, but what pulled his attention away from all the pretty things in the room was the tall, blond man sitting on the altar. He had his legs crossed and his hands folded in his lap, his face relaxed as his gaze found Cain. He seemed almost human, but his face and body were painted with brown lines that didn’t look like tattoos, but rather as if they were natural birthmarks. His image immediately struck Cain as divine and there was no question about it, even in his plain white robes this man gave off a holy energy Cain couldn’t ignore. The man before him was the Luminous God.

Cain stood there with his mouth agape, taking in the divinity that radiated from the God‘s body in his direction. Cain was torn between the urge to run and the need to walk closer to him, but couldn’t force his legs in either direction. Only when the God sent him a patient smile with his blue eyes shining encouragingly, Cain could bring himself to step towards him with weak knees.

“You’re my new sacrifice, aren’t you?” the Luminous spoke, jumping down from the altar. He was about Cain’s height, but from the sacred texts Cain knew the Gods could appear in any form. “They’re always sending virgins, huh?”

Cain took a moment before he realised he was supposed to answer. “Uh, yes,” he muttered. “Shouldn’t I be a virgin?”

The God shook his head and made a nonchalant, uncaring gesture. “I don’t mind. But I don’t really care either, virginity is more or less… hm, made up by humans. It’s not important for the sacrifice. What’s your name?”

“I’m Cain,” Cain replied, “My brother Abel was supposed to be sacrificed today, but he died a few years ago.”

The God nodded. “Yes, I am aware. I’m sorry about that, it was beyond my powers to prevent. I am the one you people call the Luminous, but you can call me Lucifer.”

“Lucifer,” Cain repeated, trying the name on his tongue. It was a beautiful, strange one he had never heard before, but he wouldn’t get many opportunities to use it anyway.

“Well Cain, do you wanna get straight to business?” the Luminous asked and reached for the sacrificial dagger with the decorated white handle that lay on the altar behind him. Cain inspected it with a gaze and gulped. He had rarely seen a sharper knife.

“Come here,” Lucifer ordered and Cain didn’t even consider to disobey. This was the reason he came here in the first place, he wouldn’t turn around now.

“You better sit down,” the God said and situated Cain on the altar, that was surprisingly soft and warm despite it being made out of stone. Cain gave him a nervous look and inhaled as Lucifer took his arm into his hand to hold it out. Lucifer’s fingertips were careful on Cain’s skin, but he could feel the God’s power buzzing and prickling where their bodies had a connection. Lucifer set the knife down on the vein of Cain’s arm and before Cain could prepare himself, Lucifer cut into it without a hint of hesitation. Cain hissed in pain and shut his eyes tightly when he felt the blade enter his skin and a moment later the warm blood dripped over his arm. It was painful, but Cain knew it had to be done. 

When he opened his eyes a moment later, Cain came to a realisation. The blood was running down his arm and made him feel weak, but he was meant to be sacrificed. This wouldn’t kill him; Lucifer should’ve cut his throat instead. What was his plan?

Suddenly Lucifer placed his lips on the cut in Cain’s arm and when he began to drink the blood, Cain almost felt like throwing up. It had never been Cain’s concern what the God did with his sacrifice, but now it seemed so obvious that he would ingest it. Cain watched with wide eyes as Lucifer sipped his blood straight from his arm without the decency to at least fill it into a cup, the God’s face getting dirty like that of a feeding animal. The marks on his body that had been a light brown before slowly became darker until they were fully black and at this point Lucifer didn’t seem human anymore. Cain realised that this God, this creature, was of far greater power than he could understand. What went through Cain now wasn’t a feeling of bypassing divinity, but that of fear.

Several minutes passed until Lucifer was done and by now, Cain had lost so much blood that his vision went dark for a moment. Lucifer took his lips off of Cain’s arm and gave him an empathetic smile that only looked gruesome with the blood around his mouth and the black lines all over his body. The God’s eyes weren’t blue anymore, they shone bright red.

Lucifer snapped his fingers and a heartbeat later his mouth was clean and the blood was gone from his face, and then he reached for Cain’s arm and with a light tap of his fingertips the cut healed immediately before Cain’s eyes. It surprise Cain for a moment before he reminded himself that the man before him was God. “You look sick, Cain,” Lucifer said with soft voice, “Maybe you should lie down in the bedroom.”

Cain looked up from his arm. “What… You…” He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. “You didn’t kill me.”

To Cain’s surprise the God let out a loud, honest laugh and gave him a smile. “Where’s the fun in that?” he asked. “Be a bit more patient, I’ll eat you eventually. But for now your blood is enough.”

“Okay…” Cain muttered, unsure what he could say to the God. He felt tired and sick to the stomach and somehow all of this was surreal. Just a moment ago he was ready to die, only to find out that today wouldn’t be that day, but that Lucifer wanted to eat him. The mere idea filled Cain with disgust, but this was his God and he wouldn’t disagree with him. His purpose was to be sacrificed so his village could thrive.

“C’mon, let’s get you to lie down for a bit,” Lucifer told him and Cain couldn’t disobey. Lucifer was his God, the one he had prayed for since he first understood the concept of a deity and nothing had really changed. Cain would still die for him, just not today as it seemed.

Lucifer guided Cain through the shrine to show him another room, one where Cain could find some sleep. His legs were still weak, not only from the lack of blood, but also because being in the presence of a God still made him nervous. Apart from Lucifer’s appearance, Cain already noticed things about him that weren’t human. Lucifer seemed to glow in a faint light and his feet didn’t make a sound when they touched the floor. Almost as if the body he inhabited wasn’t his real form.

Lucifer opened the door to one of the rooms and gestured at Cain to walk inside. Cain didn’t expect a bedroom like this, but it was spacey and homely, with a wooden table to sit on, a wardrobe and a big bed that looked perfectly comfortable, giving Cain the urge to fall down in it and sleep forever. The windows were covered with dark curtains, not letting the light of the day inside.

“C’mon Cain, you need rest,” Lucifer told him, leading him to the bed. “I won’t leave the shrine, so you can find me when you wake up,” he added when Cain sat down on the soft mattress.

Cain gave him a nod and fell backwards into the pillows, too exhausted to speak anymore. There wasn’t a single thought left in his head and all he wanted was the sleep that clouded his mind quickly, taking him away into unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

Cain’s whole body was well rested when he woke up, as if he had been sleeping for several days at once. The mattress under him was softer than anything he was used to sleep on and when he buried his face in the pillows, Cain felt like he could go for yet another few hours of napping. The air smelled of incense and something sweet Cain couldn‘t identify with his still sleepy mind, but everything was just so… comfortable. It took Cain a moment to realise where exactly he was.

Cain quickly sat up when he felt a strange presence, the mattress under him giving in to his weight, and looked around the room. There was someone sitting on the table, a short man with blonde hair who sent him a smirk. His skin was covered with lines, but his were still brown and not black like Lucifer‘s, and his body was emitting a faint light. There was no doubt that this man was a God as well.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” he hummed, sending Cain a grin as he jumped down from his table. “You were out for good fourteen hours, but I don’t blame ya. My brother sucked you pretty dry.”

“Uhm…” Cain swallowed. “Yes, I suppose so. And you are…?”

“They call me the Golden, but Gabriel is just fine,” the God hummed. Cain knew who the Golden was from stories, a deity without a people to protect. Nomad cults prayed to him, as far as Cain was aware, but he didn’t know the Golden was related to his village’s Patron God. 

All of this was still too confusing to Cain, having to face Gods and talk to them as if they were human just like him. Cain came here with the intent to die, but he didn’t think he’d have to live here and interact with deities thousand times stronger than his mere mortal soul.

“So, uhm, you live here too? Is this your room?” Cain asked. Maybe Lucifer had let him sleep in Gabriel’s bed and now he waited for it to become free.

Gabriel shook his head. “Nope. I don’t like to be tied down to a place, but I’m dropping by a lot so my big bro doesn’t get bored. Thought I could check out the new virgin.”

“That would be me,” Cain replied, “I just didn’t think he’d let me live for so long.”

“He usually does,” Gabriel shrugged, “He’s lonely, so his sacrifices live a year or two before he eats ‘em. Sorry about that, by the way.”

“It’s fine,” Cain replied bluntly. He had made his peace with this fate and he wouldn’t cry over being allowed to live another year. “Where is he now?”

“Luce? In the garden,” Gabriel said, nodding in the direction of the window. “There’s clothes in the wardrobe, if you wanna change. You can wash yourself just down the hall.”

“Yes, thank you.” Cain smiled understandingly. The Golden seemed to be friendly, different than the stories described him. They said he was a chaotic force, playing pranks on humans and Gods alike, sometimes burning down entire places just out of boredom, but he didn’t appear like a madman at all. “I wanna change into clean robes, would you mind?”

“No, of course not,” Gabriel said, moving over to the door. “We’re in the garden, just join us when you’re ready,” he added and left the room. 

Cain looked after him for a moment, just staring at the closed door, and had to process in what a weird situation he was, before he turned to the wardrobe to pick out something he could dress. 

Once Cain had changed into a simple brown robe with beautiful white patterns surrounding the hem, he tried to find the garden. He hadn’t eaten anything in almost an entire day and slowly his stomach gave him a signal that he should change that, growling loudly when Cain found the shrine’s backdoor.

The garden was a small field with different trees, some of them in bloom, others bearing ripe fruit. The scent of fresh citrus lay in the air, coming with the wind that let pink petals dance around and one could almost forget that the shrine and its garden were located within a giant sacred forest. Little birds were lurking in the tops of the fruit trees, chirping happily while the sun warmed their feathers.

Gabriel and Lucifer sat together under one of the trees, chatting with each other. When Gabriel noticed Cain coming towards them, he waved at him, yelling a “heya!” in Cain’s direction. Cain chuckled.

“Look who’s awake,” Lucifer murmured as Cain sat down in the grass with them.

Cain nodded at him. “Yes. I slept well, thank you,” he replied, only for his stomach to make itself noticeable again, letting out a low growl that prompted a laugh from Gabriel and Lucifer.

“Right, I always forget that my sacrifices get hungry,” Lucifer said with a smirk, holding out his arm. It took a second, but then one of the fruits fell from the tree above them right into Lucifer’s palm, as a reminder to Cain that the man wasn’t human and could control the nature around him with as much as a thought. As if his red eyes and the black lines over his body weren’t telling enough. It was disconcerting to Cain to be reminded that Lucifer wasn’t human at all, even seemed less human than his brother, but Cain tried to be polite about it and make it unnoticeable.

Lucifer handed it to Cain with a smile, and Cain took a moment to inspect the fruit that had just the right size to fit easily in his palm. It wasn’t like anything he had seen before, but it looked ripe and its skin was soft but firm, and when Cain bit into it, he could taste the sweet juice dribble over his teeth and tongue. He let out a small noise of enjoyment as he swallowed the delicious fruit flesh, and saw how the two Gods gave him amused smirks. 

“You can eat as much as you like,” Lucifer told him, “The fruit here ripens every day all year long, so we always have enough.”

“Is that so?” Cain asked when he went to pick some more and collected them in his robe, his growling stomach encouraging him. “Could we send some to my village then? I want my parents to eat this.”

Gabriel and Lucifer exchanged a quick look. “I could bring them to your village,” Gabriel replied, “No problem.”

Cain sat down again, biting into a fruit, and gave them a grateful smile. “Thank you, Gabriel. I appreciate that.”

“Very well, I should be on my way,” Gabriel said as he stood up and stretched his arms over himself, his head thrown back to expose the curve of his throat as he yawned. Then he went to pick one of the fruits and somehow swallowed it snakelike in one bite. Cain stared at him, trying to understand how he did that. The Golden God snapped his fingers and suddenly held two baskets filled with various kinds of produce from the garden. “I’ll drop those at your village,” he said.

“Uhm… thanks,” Cain replied. He considered asking how Gabriel just ate the fruit without even chewing it, but he scrapped that question and instead simply decided to be thankful. There was no reason in trying to fully understand a deity beyond his comprehension. “Goodbye, Gabriel.”

The Luminous God nodded at his brother understandingly before Gabriel turned around and Cain expected him to walk away, but instead the Golden just disappeared right in front of his eyes. Cain blinked a few times, confused by what just happened, but it only made sense. A God who was known for travelling a lot would naturally possess the ability to teleport.

Cain felt awkward about being alone with Lucifer, not feeling like they had a lot in common they could talk about. They didn’t know each other and although the atmosphere in the garden was nice, Cain couldn’t help being uncomfortable now that silence filled the space between them.

“How long will you let me live?” Cain asked a question that caused his body to shiver with fear, but he needed to know. He had always assumed it was the divine right of the Gods to choose who might live and who was to die, but it never felt as real to Cain as it did now. He knew it was his purpose to be sacrificed for his village, but that Lucifer could so easily decide over the moment of his death was a gruesome idea.

“Haven’t decided yet,” Lucifer replied with so much nonchalance that it seemed like a badly timed joke. Did he care at all? Maybe after centuries of taking and giving life one didn’t have the privilege to care much anymore.

Cain stayed silent, unable to form a thought that was right to put into words in front of a God. His situation wasn’t something he could fully comprehend.

“Don’t give me that look, Cain,” Lucifer sighed, taking Cain’s cheeks into his hands, the glimmer of a golden dust halo nestling around his head. “I’ll give you time. I want you to be ready.”

“I’m ready now,” Cain said, although that wasn’t the full truth. His throat felt dry and suffocatingly tight. “I’ve been ready since I came here yesterday..”

Lucifer gave him an empathetic nod, but Cain could tell that the God didn’t believe him. “I understand, Cain,” he muttered with sad eyes as he took away his hands, the spots where his fingers has previously touched Cain’s skin now burning with a pain that wasn’t physical. “I’ll try to make your stay pleasant, I promise.”

“Fine,” Cain mumbled out of lack for anything better to say. The air around Lucifer was naturally warm, but Cain felt ice cold.

“You fear me,” Lucifer stated, “It’s fine, I’m used to that.”

Cain stared at him, trying to decipher the expression on Lucifer’s face. Was it apathy or sadness? Cain couldn’t tell. “Don’t... I’m sorry,” he pressed out. How did one talk to a lonely God?

“Don’t be,” Lucifer said, his voice indifferent when he plucked a dandelion from the ground, inspecting it with so much interest that it only seemed fake. Cain had offended him somehow. “Just... just leave, all right? I need to be alone, please.”

Cain nodded and rose from the ground where he had sat before. “I’ll see you around,” he told Lucifer, but the God shrugged without much concern for anything.

“It’s hard not to,” he answered, ripping the flower to little pieces, only to cause more to bloom around him. “See you.”

Cain walked away with heavy heart. Yes, he couldn’t deny it, he felt uneasy in Lucifer’s presence. He would eat him someday soon, how shouldn’t he? That didn’t help Cain with the guilt that pooled in his stomach, only making him feel sick. He needed more sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

A few weeks had passed since Cain came to the shrine and slowly he got used to living here. Lucifer hadn’t asked for his blood anymore and Cain was grateful about that, because it still turned his stomach upside-down to imagine how Lucifer licked over his bloody lips, teeth all red like those of an animal. Being close to a God would most likely never lose its terrifying connotations, but it also fascinated Cain to learn that maybe under his powers and strange appearance Lucifer was a man he could get to know.

Cain slowly began to notice what was different about Lucifer. Already on his first day Cain saw that Lucifer didn’t make a sound when he walked, but later Cain realised that when the God went through grass he left a trail of blooming flowers behind him and wherever he stood the plants would begin to grow faster. He only had to touch the trees in the garden for their fruits to ripe immediately, and closed blossoms opened in his presence as if he was the sun. Cain felt similar about the God. Maybe it was just his loneliness in the shrine, but when Lucifer entered the room, Cain was both afraid and curious to talk to him. They hadn’t spent much time yet, since Lucifer was often away to invisibly help in Cain‘s home village, make the plants grow and the people healthy. When Lucifer was gone, Cain realised how lonely he was after all, although he wasn’t with the God too often either. 

Gabriel only came over once every few days, but Cain felt closer to him than to Lucifer by now. When Cain had no one but himself to spend his time with, he noticed that it only made him think of his family, wondering how they were holding up. Cain knew his village and the people would support his parents in their time of loss, just like they did when Abel died, but it couldn’t be easy for them. Cain often wanted to ask Lucifer about his parents, but he feared that it would only hurt him to know more about their situation.

Cain mostly spent his time with leisure, not having any special work to do. He often went to the garden and picked the fruit, filling baskets that Gabriel could bring into his village. It couldn’t fill the hole that Cain left in his community, but he hoped that the people he had spent his life with understood that the sacrifice had been the right choice.

Cain stood under one of the trees in the garden and took a fruit in his hand to inspect it, knowing well that they never had any flaws. He bit into the sweet flesh, savouring the taste.

“Munching on your breakfast, Cain?” he heard a familiar voice that startled him at first, but then prompted him to turn around.

“Hello Gabriel,” Cain chuckled, giving the Golden God a smile. He hadn’t been around for the last two weeks, so it was a welcome surprise to see him. “Breakfast? It is already long after noon.”

“Ah yeah, I’m not good with time.” Gabriel shrugged and sat down in the grass, little daisies blooming around him. “When you live mostly in a cozy pocket dimension, time loses its impact on you.”

Cain placed himself next to Gabriel. “Pocket dimension? What’s that?”

“Eh, it’s just a place where I live sometimes, that isn’t located in this world,” Gabriel chuckled nonchalantly, as if this wasn’t an absolutely alien concept. 

“Ah,” Cain replied, not really understanding, but that was fine. He could always ask again later or read up on it in the library. “Can I ask you something, Gabriel?”

Gabriel shrugged. “Yeah, sure.”

“So, uhm…” Cain mumbled, trying to put his question into the right words. “You got those brown lines on your skin, but Lucifer’s are black. Do they mean anything?”

Gabriel thought about that for a moment, rubbing his neck while he considered the question. “You know how Lucifer drinks your blood?”

“Uh, he only did once,” Cain muttered.

“Really?” Gabriel raised an eyebrow, looking surprised about that. “Cain, you should let him drink more, you know. He needs it to help your village and stay alive.”

It made sense that the God had to get his energy from somewhere, but Cain didn’t know how he felt about letting Lucifer feed on him. It was a strange thing that he wasn’t fully comfortable with.

“Anyway,” Gabriel continued, “The thing is, we Gods need to survive somehow. Most of us do that with sacrifices and the more we get the more powerful we are,” he explained. Cain nodded, but he didn’t understand yet what that had to do with the lines. “Gods who have a village usually ask for human sacrifices once every century or so. Humans are high energy and keep us alive for some time. Lucifer currently substitutes with your blood, but he can’t do that forever. Gonna make him weak soon, especially if you don’t give it to him often.”

“Oh, okay,” Cain muttered, looking down. “That’s why he has to eat me eventually?”

“Exactly,” Gabriel said, “Your flesh is fine and well, but what he really gotta eat is your soul. Those are pure powerhouses for us Gods. But when a God doesn’t consume any human blood for a long while the lines fade back into their skin, that’s why mine are brown and Luce’s are black, since he fed on you not so long ago.”

Cain contemplated on that for a moment, before he gave the Golden God an understanding look. “Okay, I get that. How do you survive though, without people who make regular sacrifices for you?”

“Simple, I got a bond with a human soul,” Gabriel replied as if that was the most obvious thing. Cain had no idea what it meant.

“Uh… What’s that?” he asked.

“You know, when two people like each other very, very much…” Gabriel said mockingly, giving Cain a big grin. Cain scrunched his nose.

“C’mon, be serious with me,” he implored.

“Yeah, well, Gods can either feed on human souls to maintain their power or we make a connection with one, meaning the human becomes immortal, but at the same time they let the God access the power of their soul,” Gabriel explained, making hand gestures while talking. “And I got my own perfect human.”

Cain listened closely to Gabriel’s explanation and thought about that solution. “It sounds a lot better than being sacrificed…” he commented, picking one of the daisies the grew around Gabriel.

“Yeah, duh,” Gabriel huffed, “It’s amazing. But also pretty much impossible to do, because the God and the human need to have intimate feelings for each other or they can’t make the bond. That’s why I’m one of the only few Gods who have that.”

“Oh,” Cain muttered, picking the daisy in his hand apart with nervous fingers. He liked Lucifer, but they weren’t close and Cain still had mixed feelings about him. “I’m glad you have someone you love.”

“Yeah, me too,” Gabriel hummed with a dreamy gaze in his eyes, “My Sammy is the most amazing human ever.”

Cain let out a chuckle and nodded, happy that Gabriel had someone like that. He had feared that the Golden was alone most of the time, but it was good to hear that this wasn’t the case. Gods deserved love too, real intimate love and not just admiration and worship. Cain understood how lonely Lucifer must have been, with a human only arriving once every century and most of them fearing him. In that moment Cain decided that he would try and make the time he had with Lucifer enjoyable for both of them.

Suddenly there was a strange glimmer in Gabriel’s golden eyes that Cain couldn’t quite identify. “All right, I think you should go see my brother,” the Golden said, getting up from his spot on the ground to pick a fruit for himself. “I just wanted to see how you’re doing anyway.”

“Uhm… sure,” Cain mumbled, surprised by Gabriel’s suddenly change of heart, “It was good to see you, Gabriel.”

“You too, Cain. Good luck,” the God replied and before Cain could think of something else to say, Gabriel vanished before him. Cain doubted he would ever get used to it.

Cain sat in the grass for some time after Gabriel was gone, but then he rose up from the ground, patted his robes, and went back into the shrine to find Lucifer. Cain couldn’t tell why Gabriel wanted him to spend time with Lucifer, but he reckoned that the Golden was concerned for his brother’s loneliness. Abel had been just the same back when he still was alive, always dragging Cain outside and making him talk to people, so he wouldn’t rot away by himself. It was thanks to Abel that Cain had many friends in the village, and by extension it probably was Abel’s fault that Cain’s goodbye hurt so much. May he rest in peace, Cain thought with heavy heart, now that his mind had wandered off to his brother again.

Cain found Lucifer in the library where the God was so engulfed in the book he was reading that he didn’t even notice Cain coming in. Or maybe he did, but didn’t see it as big enough of a transgression of his lonely peace to look up from the pages and greet the human that resided in his shrine for the time being. Cain watched the God for a moment, how he paced around in the room with no goal in mind, just reading and walking circles in the library.

“Cain,” he murmured when he finally took his eyes off from the book after a minute of silence, and gave Cain a humble smile. “I didn’t notice you,” he added with an amused smirk on his lips.

Cain walked closer to the Luminous, shrugging nonchalantly. “Gabriel told me to spend some time with you.”

“Well, I doubt you want that, Cain,” Lucifer said, the soft wind that came through the opened library windows brushing his golden hair in all directions. “I don’t want to bother you too much.”

Cain raised an eyebrow and gave the God a strange look, lacking in understanding why Lucifer would say something like that. “Why would you bother me?” he asked.

Lucifer gave him a smile, but Cain noticed the sadness in his gaze. “Don’t be ridiculous,” Lucifer said with grave voice, “I fed on your blood to sustain my powers. My presence must be unnerving for you.”

Cain shook his head in disbelief over the God’s words. “You’re not. I… I felt weird about you drinking my blood, but Gabriel told me that you need it,” he replied honestly, “I’m doing a service to my village and I’m grateful that I can live a bit longer. Please don’t hesitate to ask when you want my blood.”

“Huh, is that so?” Lucifer muttered, his fingers brushing over the beard stubble on his chin in thought. Maybe there was something human in him after all, Cain mused. Under the black lines on his skin and the aura of divinity surrounding him, Lucifer seemed like an interesting person Cain wanted to learn more about, during the bit of time that he had left. “Well, you’re probably the first human to say that,” Lucifer added with a chuckle, “Usually people are afraid of me and sometimes they even beg for death.”

“They what?” Cain asked unbelieving. “Why would they do that?”

“People fear me,” Lucifer stated bluntly, “They come here to die and most of them aren’t ready for it, and when I choose to let them live a bit longer, they’d rather hide in their room or ask me to end it quickly.”

“You don’t seem that scary,” Cain said, realising how stupid his own fear was, “And this place… It's beautiful. The entire shrine and the garden too. I couldn’t just stay in that room.”

“Is it to your liking though, the room?” Lucifer asked and he seemed honestly concerned about the matter, not that Cain could understand why.

“Yes, of course,” Cain replied with a grateful smile for the God. “Never slept in a softer bed. And I like the robes.”

“Yes, you look good in them,” Lucifer commented on the clothes Cain had chosen for the day. “Cain, I have to ask something of you.”

Cain gave him a curious look. “Of course, what is it?” he wanted to know, certain that he would never deny one of the God’s requests. Serving him was Cain’s purpose after all, he understood better now.

“It is true… I have to feed on you more often,” Lucifer told him. Cain considered it for a moment. That the God has to drink his blood had surprised and disgusted him at first, and it still scared him, but Lucifer would use the energy to protect his village, so Cain was willing to give in.

“I won’t take as much as last time,” the God reassured him, “But that’s how I survive.”

Cain nodded. “You can take from me what you need.”

Lucifer sent him an appreciating smile. “Fine, then I will. Come here,” he ordered, but his voice was soft and without urge. When Cain shuffled closer to him, Lucifer took his arm in his hand, the healed vein pointing towards him. He carefully sat a fingernail onto it and Cain watched as it slid into the skin as if Cain wasn’t made out of anything more solid than melted butter. He felt the sting of sharp pain, seeing how fresh blood spilled over his wrist. Lucifer slowly lowered his lips to it and Cain couldn’t take his eyes off of him. The first time Lucifer had done it, Cain couldn’t see much more than an animal or a feeding beast, but now he realised how divine the gesture really was. Lucifer was a God through and through, so much more than Cain first thought.

Lucifer didn’t drink as much blood this time, licking the blood from his lips before he gave Cain a thankful smile. Last time it had utterly exhausted Cain, but now he felt just fine. Lucifer closed the wound with a touch, wiping off the residue blood with his fingertip, and guided it to his mouth so nothing went to waste. The sun was just setting outside the window, painting the Luminous God in an orange light additional to his own divine glow, and with the faint blush on Lucifer’s cheeks and lips he looked just beautiful. Cain understood how grateful he could be to be one of the select few who would ever experience his God in person. It was a gift.

“Well,” Lucifer hummed after a peaceful minute of silence, “I should go do some things now, I can’t just stay in the library all day neglecting my duties. Thank you for your blood though, Cain.”

“You’re welcome,” Cain replied with a smile, nodding in the God’s direction. “I think I’ll stay here for a while until it’s dark.”

“Very well,” Lucifer said, “I’ll see you tomorrow then, Cain. Have a good night.”

“You too,” Cain muttered when Lucifer walked away, taking another look over his shoulder to give him a smirk. Cain gazed after the God and sat in the library for a long while after Lucifer had left, thinking about him some more before he picked up a book from one of the shelves. Maybe this fate wasn’t so bad after all.


	4. Chapter 4

Cain began to spend a lot more time with Lucifer, growing fond of the God over the weeks and months he stayed at the shrine. It took him a while to get used to the fact that Lucifer needed his blood, asking for it every other day when he felt like Cain had recovered from the last time, but eventually Cain came to terms with it. It didn’t disgust him anymore, instead he realised how important it was. Lucifer seemed happier when he had energy and Cain knew that he must been feeling better as well, able to do more good for the people in his village. Lucifer never took too much either, careful not to make Cain weak from the loss of blood. They shared an unspoken agreement that they would take care of themselves and each other’s needs in that regard.

Cain was with Lucifer even when the God had to fulfill his duties, listening to the prayers of his people in the village and answering them accordingly by setting some of their wishes in motion or helping them in ways that they couldn’t understand yet. He was a God after all, knowing more than a human could. Cain sat in the room, watching Lucifer meditate on the heavy stone altar with closed eyes. Sometimes Lucifer did that for hours and of course Cain didn’t stay the entire time, but he liked to look at the God for a while, just enjoying the image of divinity Lucifer presented to him.

Until Lucifer opened his eyes and jumped from the altar.

“I’m done for the day,” Lucifer said with an amused certainty in his voice when he walked up to Cain, giving him a smile. “I’m bored,” he whined, like he sometimes did after a long session of listening to prayers. “C’mon, let’s go for a walk. When was the last time you explored the forest a little deeper?”

“I haven’t been outside of this place since I came here,” Cain admitted, “It’s a good place to live. And I wasn’t allowed in the sacred forest before.”

Lucifer gave him an understanding nod. “Well, then let’s go. You’ll like it.”

Cain couldn’t say no to that, not when his God asked him and when the weather was as nice as it was today. So they went outside together.

During the last few months Cain had seen the woods only from the garden and the stained mosaic glass windows of his room, but the forest hadn’t changed, as far as he could tell. The air still smelled of the needles of young fir trees and mossy soil after the rain had kissed the earth. As they walked along the hidden paths, Cain could spot little squirrels and a tiny bunny that looked in their direction with curious eyes. They didn’t fear the Luminous God, and by extension they also welcomed Cain with their nosy nature. The small birds that nested in the trees chirped a pleasant song when Cain and Lucifer walked by, not letting themselves be disturbed by the human and the God. 

Cain had felt different when he first entered the sacred forest. He had told himself that he was ready to be sacrificed, but his hands had trembled and his knees had been weak with every step. He didn’t feel that way anymore; he was ready now. He didn’t want to leave Lucifer alone, but he wasn’t afraid anymore and thus he could appreciate the holy woods more honestly now. He enjoyed the soft soil under his bare feet, savoured the rhythm of nature, crickets and birds singing along to an undisturbed melody. It was warm, but the air wasn’t too heavy with moisture. Cain asked himself why he hadn’t left the shrine during those weeks before, but he didn’t feel like searching for the answer now. Maybe he didn’t want to tempt himself by getting too close to his home village.

“What’s on your mind, Cain?” Lucifer asked him after they had been walking a good distance away from the shrine. He seemed honestly curious about the matter, for whatever reason a God would like to concern himself with the thoughts of a human, but Cain appreciated the sentiment.

“My home, I guess,” Cain answered and let his eyes trail off into the trees, noticing little insects in vibrant colours that scrambled up the thick bark.

“Ah, homesickness,” Lucifer hummed, a little bee buzzing around him and sitting down on his shoulder. He didn’t seem much bothered by the animal. “I know how that is.”

“The shrine isn’t your home?” Cain asked curiously. He hadn’t considered that the God had lived somewhere else before.

“Well, now it kinda is,” Lucifer chuckled, “But no, I was already several millennia old when your ancestors built it and gifted the forest to me. I like to say that you humans domesticated us Gods, we used to be beasts before you began to worship us.”

“You don’t look like a beast, Lucifer,” Cain told him, but his mind reminded him of the first time Lucifer had fed on his blood, with the red fluid spilled all over Lucifer’s lips. He had seemed like a beast back then.

“Not right now, I suppose,” Lucifer chuckled, “But that’s not my true form. I don’t show it in front of humans because it scares you, some of you even to insanity. But most of us Gods look like giant eldritch animals. You might say I’m a bird if you saw me.”

“A bird?” Cain laughed, “No, I can’t imagine that.”

“It’s fine. My human form is more pleasant to look at anyway,” Lucifer hummed with a casual smile on his lips. “You’re missing your parents?” he casually changed the topic.

Cain nodded. “Yes, and my friends and the whole village. It’s my home.”

“I’m sorry that you can’t talk to them anymore, now that you are mine. You know that it would only hurt them to see you alive and for me to take you away again,” Lucifer sighed, “But I can give you invisibility and we’ll visit the village together.”

Cain shook his head, a sad glimmer in his eyes. “I’d love to see them, but I feel like that would only open old wounds.”

Lucifer sent him an empathetic smile and reached for Cain’s hand as to give him comfort. The sudden touch startled Cain at first, but then he realised how long he had been starving for physical affection in his situation, and welcomed the gesture by intertwining his fingers with Lucifer’s.

“All right, we’re there,” Lucifer broke their peaceful silence, pulling him towards something that Cain couldn’t make out.

“We’re where?” Cain wanted to know, but then the trees before them revealed a small clearing with a little pond where the sunlight touched the grass softly and reflected a holy glow on the gentle waves of the water. Tiny bees buzzed over the dandelions and daisies that speckled the forest floor generously, collecting nectar with diligent manner. The entire place emitted a feeling of thorough gracefulness, one that Cain knew from the sacred garden behind the shrine, the same that he felt whenever Lucifer was with him. Cain felt at peace.

“You like it?” Lucifer asked with a playful glimmer in his red eyes and a self-satisfied smirk curling the corners of his lips.

“Very,” Cain admitted, returning a pleased smile, “It’s nice.”

“I’m glad you feel that way, Cain,” Lucifer hummed, walking closer to the pond. “I made this place, you know? And I put a lot of effort into it.”

Cain gave the God a look of surprise when Lucifer dipped his foot in the pond. “You made it?” he asked, not knowing that Lucifer possessed the ability.

Lucifer nodded. “Yes, but that was a long time ago. I don’t have the energy to do something like that at the moment. Maybe again someday, who knows.”

“We should go for a swim, don’t you think?” Lucifer added after a moment. Before Cain could reply anything, the God was already shedding out of his robe, jumping into the pond in nothing more than his underwear. Cain watched as Lucifer emerged from the water a second later, his wet hair clinging to his forehead when he sent Cain an encouraging smile. “You’re not gonna join me?”

Cain chuckled and pulled his robe over his head. It was strange, being almost naked in front of Lucifer, but there wasn’t a reason to be shy about it. Cain could trust him. He tried the cool water with his toes, not expecting Lucifer to grab him by the arm and suddenly pull him into the pond. Cain yelped out in surprise when he fell into the water, splashing it all over himself and Lucifer, but when he resurfaced he couldn’t stop himself from laughing. Lucifer gave him a wide grin.

They swam for a while, not bothered by the little golden fish that curiously floated around them. It was a welcome change from staying in the shrine and Cain asked himself why he hadn’t thought of this before. Lucifer paddled slow circles around Cain and just enjoyed the sunlight that warmed his naked skin.

“This is nice,” Cain said, swimming around in the pond. He splashed a bit of water in Lucifer’s direction and the God replied with a soft smirk, but all of a sudden something changed about him and his smile faded quickly. The black lines on his skin began to bleed out and his lips became blue as if he was freezing.

“Luce, are you all right?” Cain asked when he saw how pale the God suddenly became. He was shivering noticeably and the black of his marks tainted his skin with an unhealthy grey colour. Something wasn’t okay here.

“I... I should get out,” Lucifer muttered, dragging himself out of the pond. He dropped down in the grass, breathing heavily before he spat out a dark fluid. 

Cain got out of the water to sit with Lucifer and watched with wide, fearful eyes as the God coughed violently, dark spit dripping from his lips. For the first time since Cain had met him, he showed a sign of sickness. The flowers by Lucifer’s feet withered away and the natural glow around him became dark. 

A moment later he was back to normal, as if this had never happened.

“I am sorry, Cain,” Lucifer sighed when he regained his posture and his faint glow of light, wiping the spit from his chin. “You shouldn’t have to see me like that.”

“No, don’t apologise,” Cain replied, placing a hand on the God’s shoulder. “I didn’t know you could be sick, Lucifer. Are you all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine, I’m fine,” Lucifer muttered, his gaze strangely self-conscious, “I want to be honest with you, Cain.”

“About?” Cain asked curiously. 

“About me getting sick. It’s one of the downsides of letting you live longer. Your blood can substitute as a source of energy, but it slowly makes me ill.”

Cain bit down on his lip. “You mean you’ll have to feed on my soul soon.”

Lucifer nodded with a sad frown. “We have two months left, maybe three. If I don’t get your soul by then, I will be corrupted. Either I’ll die or... or worse.”

“Worse?” Cain asked.

“I might become crazy instead. Hungry for human flesh.”

Cain thought about that during a moment of silence. They couldn’t do this for much longer; Cain would have to be sacrificed or people would be in danger. Worse, Lucifer could die or become a foul shadow of himself. If Cain could, he would bond his soul to the God, not because he was afraid to die, but because he didn’t want to leave Lucifer lonely by himself for the rest of the century until the next sacrifice came along. How would they treat Lucifer? Would they be afraid of him?

Lucifer broke the silence between them eventually. “I need more of your blood, Cain,” he spoke with a hint of regret in his voice.

“Of course,” Cain replied, holding out his arm for his friend. “Take what you need.”

Lucifer tried to open Cain’s arm with his fingernail like he usually did, but it didn’t seem so easy to him this time. It worried Cain. Lucifer was clearly sick, even now that he didn’t look like it anymore, showing that Cain’s blood couldn’t keep him alive forever. Lucifer would need his soul soon. Cain always thought he was ready, only to be reminded of how horrifying the idea of his own death was. Did he really come to terms with it by now or was that just what he wanted to believe?

Cain felt relief when Lucifer managed to open his skin, the sensation of sharp pain following right after that. Lucifer bent over the wound with hungry eyes flaring red, his lips sealing the cut for him to sip it like a starving beast. In that moment Lucifer wasn’t a person anymore, he was a wild creature that needed to be fed. Cain wasn’t afraid, or at least that was what he told himself, but watching Lucifer devour the red liquid filled him an unknown horror.

Cain reminded himself to breathe steadily until Lucifer finished his “meal” and turned away from him. He wiped the blood from his lips as if he was ashamed of it, his expression one of regret when he managed to face Cain again.

“I am sorry, friend,” he muttered, his gaze finding the wound that he closed with a gentle touch. 

 

Cain shook his head and reached for Lucifer’s hand. He squeezed it softly before he gave him a reassuring smile. “It’s fine. I understand why you need to do this, Luce. Please don’t be ashamed.”

Lucifer nodded, but Cain knew that the God hated himself for what he was in that moment.


	5. Chapter 5

When the last weeks of his life began, Cain made the decision to live those final days to their fullest. He asked Gabriel to come over more often, when Lucifer couldn’t be around due to his work as the village’s Patron, but when Lucifer came back, Gabriel would always excuse himself. Cain knew what the Golden wanted. He couldn’t bear the fact that his brother was slowly growing weaker and would soon be alone again, and Cain felt similar about that. Lucifer’s breakdowns became longer and more frequent, making his skin fade to an unhealthy grey colour as he coughed up black saliva while Cain was with him, gently caressing his back in support. It was almost unbearable to witness, but Cain wouldn’t part from his friend’s side until Lucifer regained his strength and asked for Cain’s blood to revitalise himself. He would give it all, if it only meant Lucifer felt better.

The thought of his impending death kept Cain awake at night, just as it had done shortly before he had left his home village. It wouldn’t hurt too much, would it? Lucifer would be gentle with him, but what would it do to the God? They were friends by now, maybe sharing the deepest relationship Cain had ever had in his almost twenty-one years of living, so how would Lucifer be able to kill him and eat his meat and soul afterwards? It seemed impossible to Cain if he imagined the roles reversed, but after centuries of going through this process Lucifer must have gotten used to it. Maybe it was normal for him to lose his friends like that.

Most nights when Cain couldn’t sleep, he found Lucifer in the library, flipping through the pages of books he had read a hundred times before. Only thanks to his insomnia Cain found out that Gods didn’t sleep, or at least didn’t need to, like humans did. At least Cain had the calming assurance that whenever he couldn’t close his eyes, he had Lucifer to talk to. Their friendship slowly developed even stronger at night than it did by day. 

Sometimes Cain only found a minute to close his eyes when Lucifer let him sit by his side and wrapped his arm around him, or allowed him to lie down in his lap, his fingers absentmindedly roaming through Cain’s hair as the God read him from his book. Cain never refused the gestures of affection between them, no matter how strange it had felt to him at first. He realised quickly that Lucifer’s soft touch was the only thing that still kept him sane as his last days approached.

Cain began to ask himself what would become of Lucifer once he was gone. Would the God just get back to his lonely life for the rest of the century? Would Gabriel visit the shrine more often to take care of his brother? And could Cain even bear to leave him? He thought he could, but when he opened the door to the library one night and saw Lucifer curled together on the couch, crying into his hands, the painful realisation stung him that the God was crying for his friend. Cain didn’t talk to Lucifer that night. He walked back to his room to stare at the ceiling with a heavy pain filling up his chest, until the morning sun sneaked in through his coloured windows and Cain got a few blissful moments of unconsciousness.

Eventually, the final day came.

For the last two weeks Lucifer had been coughing daily, sometimes spitting up so much black fluid that Cain didn’t know if there was anything left inside him but a hole full of vacuum. Lucifer‘s skin was now permanently grey and he didn’t go into the garden anymore, killing all the plants with as much as a touch. The God seemed to carry a halo of shadows, where he had emitted a faint glow before he now sucked in all source of light, making the rooms darker when he entered. Even the weather changed, raining for days on end, and Cain didn’t doubt that it was Lucifer‘s influence on the climate. They couldn’t do this any longer. Cain had to die, or Lucifer would.

“Luce, it is time,” Cain said when he entered the altar room where Lucifer was lying on the stone bench as if he was praying. The air around him was darker and Lucifer seemed to swallow up all light in order to sustain his energy. He looked sick with the dark circles under his eyes and the black lines all over him bleeding out into his grey skin.

Cain was ready now. Not ready to die, no, but ready to save his friend. He wouldn’t sit around any longer feeling peachy while Lucifer got sicker and sicker.

“What do you mean?” Lucifer asked as he sat up, but his sad eyes told Cain that the God knew exactly what he was talking about. 

“We can’t do this any longer,” Cain murmured softly as not to startle his friend, but his voice was trembling. He was still afraid. “You need to consume my soul. I don’t want you to die, Luce.”

Lucifer gazed at Cain for a long moment during which he stayed silent, his red eyes bloodshed no doubt from exhaustion. He shook his head. “We have at least a week left, Cain!” he whined, “I can’t do this now.”

Cain stepped closer to take Lucifer’s hand into his, squeezing firmly as to reassure him. His eyes were stinging and his throat became so tight it gave him trouble to breathe, but Cain stayed dedicated. “We have to. You know you can’t endure this another week. You’re dying.”

“Cain,” Lucifer cried out, “Not now. Tomorrow we can.”

“No, not tomorrow. We need to this now,” Cain told him, unable to keep his voice from breaking. This was the right choice, but Cain was so afraid to die and leave Lucifer behind. He wasn’t allowed to show it or Lucifer would never agree to the sacrifice. “Please, Luce. I ask this of you.”

Lucifer sighed deeply and stood up from the altar to wrap his arms around Cain. “Fine,” he presses out as if the word hurt him, “I will miss you, friend.”

“I will miss you too, Luce,” Cain muttered as he returned the tight hug, swallowing the tears that collected in his eyes. He couldn’t show weakness now.

Lucifer broke the comforting touch between them and gave Cain a miserable look. Lucifer was sick, but his grey skin couldn’t hurt Cain as much as the agonising expression on the God’s face. They had to take the step and do it now, or neither of them would ever have the heart to finish it.

Lucifer turned around to retrieve the sacrificial dagger he had cut Cain’s arm with the first time. It was the beginning of their shared time, and now it would also bring the end. Cain had to swallow again and again just to stifle the tears that wanted to leave his eyes so badly. He couldn’t cry, not now, not in front of Lucifer.

“You should kneel,” Lucifer told him softly, putting a gentle touch on Cain’s shoulder to push him down. Cain looked up to the God and despite the sick state he was in right now, he still looked divine. Cain was proud to have him as his God, and his friend.

Lucifer bit his lips and inhaled deeply before he placed the dagger on the big vein on Cain’s throat. “Close your eyes, Cain,” he whispered, a sheen of tears coating his red eyes, “Goodbye, friend.”

But then there was nothing. As if the whole world had just decided to freeze, there was no sound from outside, just Cain’s own heartbeat drumming in his ears and against his skin where the knife touched him. None of them moved, Lucifer didn’t slit Cain’s throat, and only a tear escaped Cain’s eyelids to roll down his cheek and hit the ground before him with a “thud” that was so quiet that it broke the silence violently.

“I- I can’t!” Lucifer breathed out as he took away the dagger and tossed it across the room, just far, far away from where it could hurt Cain. The God fell down to his knees with his hands covering his face as he began to cry. “I can’t, Cain, I can’t!” He yelled through the sobs, “I’d rather die! I’d rather the whole world died except for you!”

Lucifer’s words resonated with Cain so deeply that he couldn’t preserve his fake bravery anymore and the tears poured from his eyes without restraint, his vision becoming blurry. “But… what about you? What about my village?!”

“Damn them all, Cain, and damn the whole world too! Damn them for asking me to live without you! I won’t! I refuse!” Lucifer cried out.

“But… why?” Cain asked. His head was empty, unable to form a conscious thought. Nothing of this made sense to him, nothing of this should have ever happened. Lucifer shouldn’t be crying, he should be healthy and divine and happy, how a God was supposed to be.

Lucifer laughed as if he had just turned mad. “Why? Why?! Are you kidding, Cain? I love you, that’s why! You’re the first human that has ever made me question all of this, and I won’t kill you. I never will, I’d rather perish. I’d rather go insane!”

Cain held his breath, staring at Lucifer through the tears. Before he could even reconsider, he wrapped his arms around the God and pulled him into a starving kiss. He had needed this for so long that it felt unreal now, like some kind of perfect dream, even when Lucifer was kissing him back with hungry teeth, salty tears dripping into their touch.

“Bond with me,” Lucifer whispered against Cain’s lips, “Stay with me, Cain. Forever.”

“I’d give you anything, Luce,” Cain replied breathlessly, “Anything you want.”

Lucifer gave him a wide smile, his eyes still reddened from crying, but he had never been as beautiful before as when he chuckled into a sob, unable to stifle his grin as he wiped over his face and planted another sloppy kiss on Cain’s lips. “Let’s do it,” he murmured.

“How?” Cain wanted to know, wide-eyed and eager to do whatever Lucifer asked.

“Come here,” Lucifer said, pulling Cain up to his legs and sitting him on the altar. The God leaned in for a kiss, his hands roaming to grab Cain’s sides firmly. “I need your soul,” he murmured, “But for that we need a connection of our bodies.”

Cain’s eyes widened when he realised what Lucifer tried to explain. “You mean…”

The God nodded, a smirk curling his lips. “Yes.”

“But I’ve never-“

“It’s fine. I’ve never done it before myself, we can just find out together,” Lucifer promised him with a quick kiss. “Okay?”

“Yes, of course,” Cain replied, but he couldn’t help the nervousness that grew in his stomach. His heart was beating rapidly against his rib cage and he couldn’t tell if it was the aftermath of adrenaline or the sudden arousal thanks to Lucifer’s suggestion.

Lucifer moved carefully, his hands slowly caressing Cain’s sides until they slipped down to his thighs. His fingers came cautiously close to Cain’s middle, but when Lucifer placed his palm on his clothed, already half hard member, Cain’s breath hitched. The God was going fast with this, but Cain couldn’t come up with a coherent thought to object. He liked this. No, he needed this, had done so for a long time.

“That okay?” Lucifer asked, massaging Cain’s penis through his robe until it was fully erected and leaking spurts of precum into the fabric. Cain couldn’t do much more than nod enthusiastically, focusing on holding back his moans, but when he couldn’t stifle those tiny noises, Lucifer gave him a devilish smirk. His fingers simply felt too good.

“You wanna undress?” Lucifer murmured, his breath against Cain’s skin as he kissed down his neck.

Cain gave him a careful look and nodded, taking the hem of his robe between his fingers.

“Let me,” Lucifer offered, helping him out of his clothes. When the God’s fingertips touched his underwear and pulled them down, a nervous shiver went through Cain’s body. He saw himself fully revealed in front of Lucifer, feeling the heat creep into his face and taint his cheeks red as he swallowed deeply. 

“You look beautiful,” Lucifer told him as he wrapped his hand around Cain’s throbbing penis and gave it a firm tug, causing him to moan out under the hot pleasure of friction. A drop of precum trickled over Lucifer’s fingers.

“You’re teasing me,” Cain pressed out once he regained his breath, but Lucifer gave him a smirk of sinister amusement.

“Maybe,” he murmured with the gaze of a cat that liked to play with its prey. He took his hand away from Cain’s penis, making him almost want to protest the loss of touch, but then Cain saw that the God began to undress. With a smooth motion Lucifer pulled his robe over his head and let his underwear drop to the ground, showing his hard member that hung heavily between his legs.

“So how do we…?” Cain mumbled, staring at the God with flushed red face. Lucifer didn’t seem nearly as self-conscious as him, a confident smile quirking the corners of his mouth as he stepped back to the altar to push a demanding kiss onto Cain’s lips. His tongue tasted hot and delicious like sin.

“It’s a ritual,” the God whispered teasingly, “A blood ritual, to be exact.”

“Blood?” Cain repeated with wide eyes, but his sudden fear faded just as quickly when Lucifer gave him a gentle smile. He could trust him, and besides, Lucifer had fed on his blood several dozen times before.

“It’s gonna be fine,” Lucifer promised him softly, “I’ll heal you afterwards, all right?”

Cain nodded. “Let’s do it. I’m ready for you, Luce.”

With a smile Lucifer walked across the room to retrieve the dagger he had tossed away, and Cain couldn’t take his eyes away from the God’s firm muscles as he moved. The curve of his naked ass looked delicious and when he bent down to pick up the blade, Cain forgot how to breathe for a moment. His cock was straining against his stomach from arousal.

Lucifer gave him a smirk when he came back, now his bare front shown to Cain. It was just as delicate, even with his skin still grey, the God looked great. Cain had imagined his body to be toned with strong muscles, and that was the case, but he was glad to see the layer of fat covering it, making Lucifer look soft and pleasant to touch. It was nice to know that the black lines on his skin even circled around his dick like a daring tattoo.

“All right,” Lucifer hummed as he placed the blade on his chest.

“I thought you’d cut me?” Cain asked curiously.

Lucifer smiled softly. “It’s a bond between both of us, so it’s only natural for us both to give something,” he explained as the sharp dagger went into the skin of his chest. Lucifer didn’t even flinch as he carved a rounded sigil into it, swiftly as if he had practiced. Cain noticed that the God’s blood wasn’t red like his own, but black instead, and with a tiny sting of pain he realised that the fluid Lucifer had been coughing up over the last weeks was exactly that.

“Okay, your turn,” Lucifer murmured, placing the blade on Cain’s chest without wiping it clean beforehand. “I’ll be careful.” 

Cain nodded as to consent and the God slid the dagger into his skin. It stung sharply, but Cain had gotten used to that. He inhaled deeply to endure the pain as Lucifer sliced a sigil into his chest that seemed to complement the one on his own body. It was quickly done.

“Now for the fun part,” Lucifer chuckled. Cain felt his wound throb with fresh, hot blood, but it hadn’t killed his arousal at all. “Lay down, Cain,” Lucifer ordered in a voice that made it impossible for Cain to disobey. He felt the warm stone of the altar against his back as he shifted on it, unable to comprehend that he would do it with Lucifer in this sacred room now. In the shrine, with a God. It was completely insane.

Cain couldn’t do much more than watch as Lucifer licked his fingers and began to scissor himself open, moaning due to his own touch. Cain wanted to take him just because of that, but he knew he had to be patient until Lucifer was ready. Luckily the God didn’t wait much longer either, getting on top of him and taking Cain’s member into his hand to align it with his entrance. Cain’s breath hitched as he felt how close he was already, not even having entered Lucifer yet. The God slowly sat down on him, his hole swallowing Cain’s penis, and threw his head back to reveal the delicate curve of his neck while he whined out a needy moan. Cain couldn’t make a sound, couldn’t even breathe, too overwhelmed by the hot feeling of Lucifer’s tight hole clenching hungrily around his girth.

Lucifer gave them both a moment to adjust before he began to move with a slow rhythm, squeezing groans of pleasure through Cain’s strained throat. It was too much to comprehend, a feeling so hot and warm and perfect that Cain forgot how to form a coherent thought, only able to listen to his need for more as he let his hips grind into the God above him. 

Lucifer looked beautiful, divine even. Although his skin was grey, Cain noticed a dark blush on his cheeks and swollen lips, his penis needy for touch as it throbbed with every of Cain’s upward thrusts. Both of them were close to coming, but this was too good not to drag out every second of it, their hands finding each other’s bodies, roaming and tugging and pulling tightly.

They moved for a while that seemed awfully long and way too short at same time, just relishing every moment and every motion, until Lucifer bent down to catch Cain in a starving kiss. When his chest touched Cain’s, their blood intermingled between them and a bolt of electricity went from the God into the human beneath him. Suddenly Cain could feel everything more clearly, knowing that their blood ritual was complete with the union of their bodies, his soul connecting with the God like the churning waves of the ocean crashing violently into the shore. Cain couldn’t hold back his climax any longer, coming into Lucifer with a loud moan forcing itself through his clenched teeth.

Cain took a minute just to breathe, calming down as the afterthought of his orgasm ebbed away, but when he opened his eyes again, Lucifer had changed. The God was glowing with a powerful light, a soft smile adorning his lips. His skin had returned to a healthy peach colour and his eyes, for the first time since Cain had come to the shrine, shone blue again. He was beautiful.

Lucifer shuffled to lie down on the altar with Cain, sharing a sloppy kiss. “That was perfect,” he murmured as he reached out to Cain’s chest in order to heal him. “Thank you.”

Cain chuckled. He felt at peace, more so than he had ever done before. “I love you, Luce.”

“I love you too,” Lucifer replied softly.


	6. Epilogue

Cain hadn’t made a single prayer since he had left his village all those months ago. It didn’t make much sense to him to pray to a God he could talk to in person and ask for whatever he wanted. Especially now that his soul was bonded to Lucifer for eternity, the God wouldn’t deny any wishes to him, as long as the request was in his powers, but Cain couldn’t help the feeling that something was missing.

His religion had been a major part of his life ever since Cain’s early childhood, and although he was closer to his God now more than ever, he missed the routine and rituals of his belief. He missed the worship service every full and new moon, he missed the sacrifices for every harvest and he missed the calming meditation of the praying rites.

So when Lucifer went away to fulfil his duties during the day, Cain made a decision. He would practice a prayer by himself, just for old times sake. Just to be reminded of his roots and that he hadn’t lost them yet. 

He collected the ingredients he needed for the ritual, glad to find out that there was plenty of them available in the shrine. Charcoal and water were easy to find and Cain could even get a few white candles. The silver bowl was harder to retrieve, but luckily Cain found a chalice that would do the trick. After he had placed and lit the candles on the warm stone of the altar, Cain took off his robe and went on to crushed the charcoal to mix it with the water in the chalice until it made a black liquid paste that he could draw with. Once he had made a nice sigil on the altar, Cain continued on to draw another one on his naked chest. Now the meditation part began.

Cain put the chalice away and got down to his knees, his hands flat on the ground in front of him, and tried to get comfortable in his position. The wooden floor in the shrine was always warm, so Cain had no problem with the temperature, even dressed in nothing more than his underwear, but it still took him some time to get into the right mindset. To accomplish the prayer he had to focus on his God completely, making sure his every thought and energy was guided towards the Luminous until the ritual trance was achieved. It always took a while and sometimes didn’t work at all if one couldn’t concentrate, but with the connection between Cain and Lucifer it was easier than ever.

Cain began to pray. What was he praying for, exactly? He thought of his family and wished for them to find fortune and happiness. Then he was reminded of his village, of his friends and community, and asked for a good harvest and health among his people. Finally Cain came to the most important person in his life, his God, his love, his soulmate. Lucifer. All Cain wanted was for Lucifer to never leave, and he knew that this was the request the God wouldn’t deny him. They would stay together until the end of time. And that was all Cain needed.

Before Cain could end his prayers, he felt a shift in the air and suddenly he knew that when he would open his eyes, Lucifer would stand in front of him. Cain looked up to him, finding the God sitting on the altar with a casual smile on his lips. He was of full health again and the lines on his skin that had been black for so long were slowly fading back to a soft brown. “You’re praying?” Lucifer asked with an amused tone ringing in his voice, helping Cain up from the ground. Cain nodded.

“For old times sake, you know?” he replied, pressing a welcoming kiss to his soulmate’s lips. “I just worry about my village and my family.”

“Do you now?” Lucifer chuckled, “Well, you could just say so. We can go visit them, I bet they’ll be delighted to see you.”

Cain’s eyes widened. Was Lucifer playing with him? “What do you mean?”

“Remember the bond we made a few days ago?” Lucifer asked jokingly. Of course Cain remembered the most important event of his life. “Someone has to tell your village. Wanna do that?”

Cain couldn’t believe a word Lucifer said. It sounded so surreal, getting the opportunity to see his family again after being away from them for a year. Cain couldn’t put the emotion he felt into words, a heavy pain that grew inside him just from being overwhelmed by happiness until he felt tears running down his cheeks. Lucifer softly wiped them away with his thumb and gave him a kiss. “Do you want to?” the God asked.

Cain nodded, unable to speak from the sheer emotions flooding his mind. He needed to see his family, his friends, tell them all that he was alive and well and found love in his God. 

Lucifer gently took Cain’s hand and reassured him with a fond smile. “Let’s go.”


End file.
